The Christopher Columbus Mystery

After many years of shopping his plan to reach Asia by sailing west from Europe, Christopher Columbus finally received funding from King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain.  Isabella, a model for today’s liberated women, and Ferdinand, a man with a sharp military and political mind, believed opening a new trade route to the East would greatly benefit their country.  Soon, Columbus and his men were sailing into history to inadvertantly discover a new world.

Christopher Columbus is a man of mystery.  He seemed to be all about himself, an opportunist who married a noblewoman just to better his standing in society.  But Columbus was also a fearless explorer.  Every year, he seems to become more controversial, with his alleged abuse of native people at the center of the controversy. Was he just a product of his times who should not be held to 21st century standards?  As Columbus Day approaches, let us examine the life of this enigmatic man.

Although most historians agree that Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa in 1451,  there is some debate about his origins.  Portuguese and Scandinavian seem to be the main runners-up to his being Italian but Greek, Galician, Swiss, Catalonian, Armenian, and Chinese have also been suggested.  However, family documents indicate that he was born to Domenico and Susanna Columbus in Genoa in 1451. 

Columbus seemed to grab every opportunity he could to promote himself.  In 1479, he married Felipa Moniz Perestrello, which changed his status from commoner to nobleman.  After this, opportunity knocked again.  The Islamic countries closed Europe’s eastern route to Asia which made merchants think about a western route.  So Columbus seized the day with a proposed voyage westward but was rejected by Italy and Portugal.  He finally received funding from Spain.

Instead of finding China, Columbus found the New World.  He made four voyages and discovered the islands of Antigua, Cuba, Haiti, St. Kitts, San Martin, St. Croix, Tobago and Grenada.  Exploring the Bahamas and Greater Antilles, Columbus went on to South America and traveled along the Caribbean side of Panama.

Columbus did some great things and some evil things.  Although Leif Ericson traveled to the New World five hundred years before Columbus, he did not change the world like “The Great Navigator” did.  Columbus opened the door to European ideas, philosophy, economics and culture, and made Spain a superpower.  However, the inhumane treatment of the natives under his command are well documented. He also put to death any of his men who disagreed with his tactics.  Columbus and his men brought syphilis back from the New World which resulted in the deaths of four million people.

Although Columbus did many great things, his legacy of enslaving, torturing and killing indigenous people will haunt him forever. Some say he was a product of his times and should not be judged by modern standards.  However, I believe this is contradicted by Spain’s punishment of him when they learned of his atrocities.  No, Christopher Columbus was a brilliant, charismatic, ruthless psychopath who would stop at nothing to get his way.